September Author Spotlight

I’m excited to have award-winning author Phoebe Stone share her thoughts on this month’s author spotlight. Not only is Phoebe a prolific author, but she is an amazing painter, as well. Be sure to visit her website after viewing the beautiful photograph of her with a few of her paintings at the end of this post. Meanwhile, let’s get right to the questions.

Please share a little about your books.

All my novels so far have been written in the first person. It’s quite a challenge to get the voice in each book to sound different from my others. But that’s a challenge I love. I usually write from an eleven or twelve-year-old girl’s perspective. I wrote “The Romeo and Juliet Code” and its sequel “Romeo Blue” using my childhood experiences in England and my love of the sea and my interest in World War II. The main character Flissy Bathburn is English but I set that book in a large old house on the ocean in Maine.My new book (to be published by Arthur A. Levine Books, Scholastic) is coming out next spring. It takes place in present day France! This is the very first time I have told anyone about it! It will be called “Paris for Two.” I am pretty excited about it.

Congratulations, Phoebe, “Paris for Two” sounds wonderful!

How has where you’ve lived or traveled influenced your work?

The sense of place is very important in my books. When I am writing a story I know I will be spending many hours in that place so I want it to be an interesting and enriching place, a place with personality, a place with mystery and poetry, a place that inspires me. And I love houses. My grandmother’s house, my mother’s house, houses my family lived in when I was growing up, houses I long to live in that I have only seen from afar, houses with a sense of romance, houses with a sense of intrigue, houses with a story of their own to tell.Could you briefly tell us your writing process?

When I begin writing a first draft for a novel I have no idea where I am going. It’s quite a bit like a journey that you set out on with a little knapsack on your back with only a few supplies…I am no good at reading maps and I never plot out a story before I start. So there is a bit of anxiety when I begin. Where am I going? What’s going to happen? Will I find the end, my destination? I just start writing and yes, at first I wander a little bit because I haven’t determined the direction. And then suddenly things begin to take shape. I find the road and begin to understand where I am going. Sometimes along the way I can glimpse the end of the book far off in the distance. I stop and write it down. That eases my anxiety. At least I know where I am going to end up. Then I can begin to figure out how and what happens in order to arrive at this end.

For me the anxiety puts an edge on things and I think that’s good. If I don’t know what will happen next and am in a process of discovery, perhaps my readers will feel the same.

In a fumbling way I find my story. Then I go back and cut my earlier wanderings. I begin to shape the book. And I talk things over with my editor. Every time I rework a story, a new layer occurs. I arrive at things I never could have in just one pass. So yes, I take the journey many times, but the first journey is the most exciting and the scariest.What advice would you give to new authors/illustrators hoping to become published?

Don’t give up. You might have to be a bit of a maniac. Writing is not a part time thing. Expect you will have to sacrifice some real life for inner life. Dedicated writers actually give up quite a lot to accomplish what they have accomplished. “No, I can’t go on that hike with you guys, I have a deadline!” It takes many hours to learn to write well and then to maintain it. We aren’t ballerinas or basketball players but it takes the same kind of constant will and practice.For novelists, if you wish to get published you have only one goal: to get good at what you are doing. If your book is good with good unique writing and good characters and a good sense of place and a good plot, you will get published. It will happen.And I always advocate listening to great books read aloud on CDs. It’s important to hear the cadence, the flow, the rhythm of good lines in great books. It’s a wonderful enriching way to learn.

favorite movie =Doctor Zhivago. I know, it’s a tiny bit dated. The clothing and hair-dos are so 1960. But what a movie! What a plot! Such romance and poetry, such characters, such music and the sets are memorable. Omar Sharif is magnificent. And I believe the critics panned the movie when it first appeared. I think that broke the director David Lean’s heart. favorite hobby=I like to go to flea markets and find some piece of fabric, perhaps a curtain from the 1800s that will inspire me with its color and design and make me wonder who owned it and why. I also love to paint. In fact, I started out as a painter and went to art school.favorite color=Right now it’s yellow. A yellow room is a room full of sunshine. It’s a rich color but it never steals the light from a room. Instead it adds light and paintings look beautiful against yellow. favorite book=Anything by Beatrix Potter. She has such charm and such style and she is such a master of her craft. Wow.favorite vacation=All of them. They bring so much joy and inspiration. And a vacation stands out forever in one’s memory. More please!

To learn more about Phoebe and her beautiful books, please click here for her website.Phoebe, thank you for this amazing look into your creative life!

I enjoyed learning more about Phoebe Snow. Thanks for the post, Marcia. I’m glad I’m in good company as far as not knowing where I’m going when I begin a manuscript. I think it makes it that much more fun! 🙂

Great interview! I love reading about other authors’ writing processes, and Phoebe’s artwork is just beautiful. And I can definitely relate to being a bit of a maniac. 🙂 Writing requires a strong focus, dedication, and determination.

Thank you so much!!!! Marcia and everyone! I also loved reading your earlier post about Edith Wharton’s house . I visited it years ago before it was all restored. Lovely to see it finished in the photos! Now I must go back and revisit it!

Another fascinating Author’s Spotlight Post! Phoebe Stone’s books look very interesting. I love her illustrations and her paintings! Just beautiful! I look forward to reading some of her books! I will be making frequent visits to her website to view her amazing paintings! I enjoy meeting new authors and illustrators through your spotlight posts! 🙂

When I look at the photo of stunningly beautiful Phoebe Stone sitting in front of her wonderful art with a ginger cat in her lap, I can see her as a *character* in a great Russian novel such as Doctor Zhivago. Thank you for featuring her, Marcia.

Gorgeous paintings, indeed! I know where I’ve heard about Phoebe’s book, The Romeo and Juliet Code. My friends over at the DMS featured it some time ago. And it left quite an impression. I like Phoebe’s titles as well (the Boy on Cinnamon Street and Deep Down Popular). Will go check them out!

Hi again Rhonda. Yes, yellow is especially great on a wall. It’s warm and bright and enhances other colors and never darkens a room. As far as I am concerned, light in a room is the most important thing.

Hi Phoebe!! Yep, we have lots of yellow around our house– and I found your first Romeo book at the library and bought the second!! Am reading through now. So excited– hope to read one to my 4th graders at school!

Hello Marcia,
Thank you so much for pointing out the Spotlights tab, I missed it completely.
I enjoyed finding out more about Phoebe, and you are right about the photograph at the end of the post – it is beautiful. I also went and had a look around her website so a very enjoyable half hour, thank you. I will be back to check out more of your Spotlight posts when I get the time. Barbara

Hi, Barbara, so happy you enjoyed getting to know Phoebe. She’s an amazing talent and I was thrilled to share an author table with her at a book fair a couple of years back. Thanks for checking out the Spotlights Tab, it’s easy to miss. 🙂

“Strykowski ably depicts Amy’s insecurity and self-doubt, Craig’s bravura and pain, and Miss Cogshell’s wisdom with a deft, convincing touch. In essence, Amy comes of age as she fights to find her voice in the outside world and shed some of her debilitating insecurity. Readers will cheer her on, and her splendid team, too.” –BOOKLIST

"The protagonist grows throughout the story, from a shy loner to having two friends and speaking her mind in front of her adversaries at school as well as to the whole town. …Amy is a reliable narrator and easily relatable.” –SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL

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More Praise

“To do a good deed, we can find friendship in the most curious of locations. “Call Me Amy” is a novel from Marcia Strykowski following the struggles of Amy Henderson, who finds an injured seal and seeks to nurse it, with the help of a scorned aging woman and an unusual youth. Set in the early 70s and exploring the essence of loneliness, “Call Me Amy” is a powerful read that should prove so very hard to put down, highly recommended.”—MIDWEST BOOK REVIEW

“This is a wonderful YA tale for the simple fact that it shows one and all that the power and courage to stand up and be heard in this life comes from within. And that no matter who you are, you have that toughness inside your soul. Craig has a lovely heart that hides behind that sarcasm he aims at the world, and he will remind every small town girl about that quiet boy she fell in love with long ago. ‘Old Coot’ brings the fun and humor along with her, and Pup is the sweetest creature in the world. Having all the ingredients of first love, faith, loss and strength makes ‘Amy’ unforgettable.” —FEATHERED QUILL

“For Amy, 1973 has been a lonely year, her only friend moved away and she feels awkward around her classmates. Until one day Amy discovers that Craig, another classmate, has rescued an injured seal pup. Amy agrees to help him and together they hide the pup at Miss Cogshell’s house, the odd old lady most kids call “Old Coot.” Amy learns that people aren’t always what they seem to be, and she forms a friendship with Craig and Miss Cogshell. A great story about friendship and doing what you think is right.” —KIDSBOOKSHELF

“For those ages 8 to 12, Call Me Amy by Marcia Strykowski will resonate with familiar themes of growing up. The year is 1973 and for Amy Henderson, it has been a lonely one with too many awkward moments to count. When she finds an injured seal pup, she rescues him to rehabilitate him. In the process she forms an unlikely alliance with Craig, a boy around her age, and an older woman in town. With their help she discovers that people aren’t always what they seem despite what others may think of them. This is a story filled with many elements that will appeal to younger readers and I highly recommend it.”—BOOKVIEWS.COM

"A wounded seal pup propels 13-year-old Amy Henderson into an unlikely alliance with an unusual older woman and a mysterious boy in a small Maine fishing village. Readers will cheer for Amy as she protects Pup, gains confidence, faces challenges, and comes up with an idea that could change not only the future of her village, but also, her own life. With a skillful hand, Strykowski introduces us to a small town with memorable characters and the girl who could bring them all together." ---Anne Broyles, award-winning author of PRISCILLA AND THE HOLLYHOCKS

"In a small town in Maine in the 1970's, Amy is standing on the brink of becoming a young adult. The events that will force her to discover who she is, what she is made of and how she wants others to perceive her are sweetly told through awkward teenage moments, the triumphs and sadnesses of that age and ultimately, Amy's discovery of her own beliefs, strength and courage." ---Kathleen Benner Duble, acclaimed author of THE SACRIFICE

“Call Me Amy is exactly the type of book I love. The characters are relatable and likeable; they are individuals that the reader enjoys getting to know while watching them change and develop. The setting of the small Maine coastal town is idyllic, and the reader is quickly and completely immersed in this community. Although the novel takes place in the 1970s, it feels timeless. Young readers will readily associate with Amy’s struggles and triumphs with her relationships with family and friends, and mature readers will be gently nudged back to this period in their life. These universal qualities make this novel a perfect choice for many types of readers. As a Youth Services Librarian, I would enthusiastically recommend Call Me Amy to our young patrons as well as to a more adult audience. Because it can be enjoyed on so many levels, this novel would be an ideal source of discussion for an adult/child book group.” ---Patty Falconer, Youth Services Librarian

"I just finished CALL ME AMY and I think it is wonderful with beautiful descriptions. I love the characters and their story. It is like having seen a good play or movie and later, while you are doing other things, it comes back to you and you think about the characters again." ---Peggy Arnold, retired teacher and avid reader.

For 13-year-old Amy Henderson, 1973 has been a lonely and uneventful year in her small Maine fishing village. With the help of a wounded seal pup, she gets to know Craig, who slinks around in an oversized army jacket. A new law against handling wild marine mammals brings suspense to the story. Where can they keep Pup until he heals? Their only hope is to trust Miss Cogshell, an elderly woman keeping to herself amidst jeers from the local kids, who catches them sneaking Pup into her woodshed in the middle of the night. Throughout the book, small challenges prepare Amy for her greatest one of all. A challenge that leads her to discover that everyone, herself included, has a voice worth hearing.